EU data protection group questions other search engines

European Union regulators said they would broaden their ongoing probe into the privacy issues first raised about search engine giant Google, to cover other search engines as well. Although they did not identify which other search engines were involved, most likely it will include rival search engines Yahoo! and Microsoft Live.

The European panel of national data protection officers is concerned about the time that search engines store data on their users’ search habits. The decision to broaden the probe means Google will have to wait longer to find out whether it will face any sanctions. Google attempted to calm EU concerns earlier this month by limiting the time it keeps users' personal search data to 18 months, down from the previous 24 month period. The company also promised to look at shortening the lifespan of cookies it deposits on computers.

Under Google's current solution, the logs will still be kept, but the IP addresses associated with them would be scrambled permanently after 18 months, making it impossible for anyone (including Google) to associate the information with the original users.Both Yahoo and Microsoft also said to take their users’ privacy very seriously. If search engines like Google, MSN, and Yahoo don't comply with the commission’s requirements for privacy, they may face hefty fines from the EU until they figure out some way to resolve privacy issues.